Today, Assemblyman Karl Brabenec (R,C,I-Deerpark) voted to enact a host of reforms to the state’s education system. Brabenec, an outspoken critic of Gov. Cuomo’s attempted education takeover, the state’s failure to address problems with Common Core, and standardized testing, praised the new legislation, saying that it was a needed step forward. In addition, this bill eliminates the governor’s ability to hold local school funding hostage if his system of teacher evaluations isn’t put into place. Brabenec has advocated for a number of reforms in this bill, including a comprehensive review of the Common Core standards to be completed by an independent panel of educators, as well as developmentally appropriate tests and curriculum.

“Common Core and the current system of high stakes standardized testing are broken. It’s as simple as that,” said Brabenec. “Finally, the concerns of parents, teachers, administrators and students are being heard. After the grassroots opt-out movement during this last round of testing was so successful, Gov. Cuomo and the Assembly Majority had no choice but to listen to the concerns of stakeholders in education. I’m confident that this bill is a significant step toward fixing our flawed education system and eliminating Common Core.”